The Navy Reports Uneven Progress in Combating Sexual Assault

By
Joseph L. Jordan, Attorney at Law
|May 11, 2015

According to a new report released earlier this month, the Navy's efforts
to combat the prevalence of sexual assault among its ranks have been moderately
successful. The fiscal 2014 Annual Report on Sexual Assault in the Military
revealed that while reporting on the crimes has gotten better, no progress
has been made in curtailing incidents of retaliation against men who speak up.

According to the
Navy Times, the head of the 21st Century Sailor Office confirmed the report, which
used the 2012 and 2014 Rand military workplace studies to compare numbers. As the
Navy Times details, several points were evident in the resulting statistics:

Reporting of sex crimes has gone up 10%

50% of those who reported unwanted sexual contact were men

Only 8% of servicemen were assaulted reported the crime

Roughly 33% of servicewomen who were assaulted reported the crime

While the servicewomen reporting rate is a significant improvement from
years past, another statistic is troubling to officials: 62% of servicemen
who reported an assault also reported suffering retaliation. That number
hasn't moved since the 2012 Rand report. "I am concerned that
a high percentage of victims perceive that negative things happen to them
[after reporting an assault]," Rear Adm. Rick Snyder told the press
following the report's release. "We're worried about that
number."

A Broader Definition of "Sexual Assault"

Another focus of the Navy's efforts following the report is to help
servicemen redefine when an offense has occurred. Hazing is prevalent
in Navy and many of the men reporting an assault noted that, often, the
assault happened multiple times, with multiple perpetrators, and that
alcohol was frequently involved. "The victims need to understand
that what they're experiencing, although they may consider it hazing
or initiation, we need to look at more broadly," Rear Adm. Rick Snyder
said. "It's sexual assault if it involves sex parts."

Still, Snyder remained positive that progress was being made-- and that
more efforts are being made to curtail both assault and retaliation for
reporting assault. "Action is underway with getting more info about
what the victims are actually experiencing," he told reporters.

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